


On Letting Yourself Fall

by hammrtime



Category: Metal Fight Beyblade | Beyblade Metal Saga
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Coming of Age, F/M, Growing Up, Missing Scenes, Post-Canon, Reluctant friends to lovers, the fic tween me would've wanted
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-18
Updated: 2021-01-14
Packaged: 2021-03-11 04:34:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,526
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28139280
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hammrtime/pseuds/hammrtime
Summary: One day, Kyoya meets a girl who isn't intimidated by him in the slightest. He hates it. Really, he does. Or doesn't he?Canon-Divergence in chapters 1-3, Post-Canon after that.
Relationships: Kyoya Tategami/Original Character
Kudos: 1





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, 2020 and uni have teamed up and finally made me lose my mind. So, here's the fic 12-year-old me would've loved but wasn't able to write. Enjoy if you can, leave a comment if you feel like it.

When they first meet they’re 14 and 13 and, looking back, Kyoya now knows that he was a grade-a asshole back then. A fact he was blissfully unaware of back when he met her. 

He sees her walking along the river, near the more shady part of town, encroaching on Face-Hunter territory, but he doesn’t approach. Yet. Instead, he observes for a second. He hasn’t seen the girl before, so she must be new in town. She isn’t carrying a Bey, at least not visibly, but not everyone flaunts it like he likes to do. Still, that doesn’t mean she doesn’t have some points for him to take. And even if she doesn’t, he ought to tell her just whose part of the city it is she’s just stepped foot in. So, he gets up from where he’s been sitting on the curb and walks up to her with brisk steps.

"You there. Stop." She turns around and looks at him, completely unfazed by his tone. She doesn’t say anything either, but raises an eyebrow instead, a questioning look in her eyes. 

"And you are?" There’s a tone to her voice that he doesn’t like at all.

"Kyoya Tategami. Leader of the Face-Hunters." Even as he drops the title on her, her eyes, steely blue, betray no emotion, no fear. Not even nervousness. It seriously ticks him off. It's what she says next though, that really gets his blood boiling. 

"That a band or something?" He clenches his fists, then releases them again.

"It’s a Gang. The one that controls the ground you’re walking on and if you know what's good for you, you better not get on our bad side." For a second, she doesn't say anything, but, when she finally speaks up it's not what she expected to hear.

"So I suppose I should be scared then?" Her voice is dripping with dry sarcasm, but there’s something else behind it, something firm and unrelenting. 

He isn’t about to back down either, so he keeps looking at her, his eyes narrowed to slits. For a good few seconds, they have out their silent staring contest, dark blue eyes versus light ones. When she speaks again, she doesn’t seem rattled.

"Well, _Kyoya_ , in that case, I better run on home."

With that, she turns, laces her hands behind her back, and, all too casually, saunters off. The entire exchange was infuriating. No, really, he’s _pissed_. Kyoya has half a mind to stop her, call after her or grab her arm or something, but he stops himself. She isn’t worth his time. If she meets his guys and gives them lip like that, they’ll teach her a lesson and he won’t even have to lift a finger. He scoffs and heads off in the opposite direction. Out of sight, out of mind. 

Except it doesn’t quite work that way. Occasionally, he catches himself thinking about that relentless glare and the way his name rolled off her tongue, in that mocking tone. He doesn’t know what’s worse, the fact that she was mocking him or that he can’t seem to forget about it. Soon though, other things, like that damn Ginka and the whole mess that follows in his wake, occupy his mind and he almost forgets about the incident completely.

—

When he meets her a second time, it’s not a coincidence. From the second he woke up in what he now knows to be Madoka Amano’s place he’s had people making a fuss over him and no matter how often he tells them that, _no,_ he doesn’t need their help, they don’t stop. When they finally leave him alone, he takes a second to ground himself and decides that he needs to get out of here. But before he has the chance to do anything, the door creaks open one more time, revealing just about the last person he expects. The girl from the river. 

"Hey, You good?" she asks, all casual, as she walks into the room.

"What are _you_ doing here?" 

"Charming." She walks towards the bed and stops a few steps away from him. "You majorly got your ass kicked by that corporate-creep, so I figured I’d check on you."

"How do you even know that?" She frowns at the question, almost as if she doesn’t know what he’s talking about. 

"Because I was there?"

"Oh." Last night he must have been so caught up in the moment, he didn’t notice her at all. "You’re part of Ginka’s little group." He infuses the words with as much spite as he can muster at the moment but, once again, it doesn’t seem to affect her at all.

"So, are you feeling alright?"

"What’s it to you?" At that, she sighs deeply.

"Would it kill you to get your head out of your ass for a change?" She doesn’t sound angry. Rather than that, her voice is laced with humor, just as it was when they first met. "There’s this thing called 'basic human decency', that’s why I’m here. You should try it sometime."

No matter her intentions, the last thing he wants right now is being lectured by a person he neither knows nor likes. Besides, he still wants to get out so he decides to end the conversation as quickly as possible. 

"I’m fine. Now, get out." 

"I mean it." Oh _great_. Of course she isn’t satisfied with that answer. That would’ve been too easy. "That stunt you pulled with Benkei? Not cool." By now, the humor in her voice is gone.

„He should’ve known better than to get in my way.“

The second the words are out of his mouth, he sees something shift in her. For a few seconds, silence fills the room, then she takes a step towards him, hands balled to fists at her sides.

 _ **"We thought he wasn’t going to wake up!"**_ Her voice booms through the small room, full of not just anger, but fury. So, her composure’s finally slipped. "You wanna know what was the first thing on his agenda after he regained consciousness? Begging Ginka to come save you from your own stupidity! And even though you’ve been nothing but a colossal ass to him and his friends, he actually did!"

Kyoya knows that, the others have talked to him already, but her words still put things into a different perspective. All of them had been relieved to see that he’d woken up again, neither of them angry about what happened. The girl obviously feels quite differently. He realizes that, yeah, he does feel kind of bad about it. 

"And here’s the kicker, somehow, none of them are actually mad at you! They’re concerned. After what happened with you and Daidouji they took you here to make sure you were going to be alright."

Kyoya could probably count the times he’d been stunned into silence on one hand. Right now definitely adds one to the count. He isn’t intimidated by the girl, no, but something about her words and the obvious discrepancy in them, have left him struggling to find something to say. She’s pissed, that much is obvious, but she’s still _here_. Was still there last night. 

If he'd been in her shoes, he would have left himself behind. And he sure as hell wouldn’t come to visit, not even to chew himself out. He just can’t wrap his head around it. When he doesn’t say anything, she continues, no longer shouting but he can see the anger in her eyes, even though her tone is measured.

"They’re good people, and I’m not going to let you hurt them like you hurt Benkei."

Not that he’d planned on doing it again, but the way she says it makes him want to talk back. He’s not going to let himself be ordered around by some girl he doesn’t even know, or anyone else, for that matter. 

"Or what?" He says this in a low voice, an edge to his tone. 

Maybe, at this point, he should have expected it, but she doesn’t look intimidated in the slightest. Quite the opposite. There’s an intense look on her face, a cold glint in her eyes.

"You’re not the only one who can sling threats."

Alright, that's it. Kyoya is getting out of here, right now. He's irritated and has things to think about. To hell with it if she sees it and tells the others. What are they going to do about it, drag him back here?

"I’m leaving." He grabs his things and puts on his shoes. Then he makes his way over to the window and opens it. All the while, she just looks at him in silence, even though it’s clear as day he’s trying to sneak out. "What, not gonna tell the others?"

"I’m many things, Kyoya Tategami. A snitch isn’t one of them." That catches him by surprise. He doesn't see why she'd do him a favor, especially after what just happened. "It's pretty clear you don't want anyone else to see you."

"Right, sorry." The words are out of his mouth before he can think about it. He’s just apologized to her. Kyoya Tategami doesn’t _apologize_ to people. Not ever.

Except he just did. 

"You don’t have to go out the window, you know? The others are down in the workshop, nobody would notice you walking out the front door." He doesn’t bother with an answer. "Alright, got it. Just be careful, I don’t feel like scraping your remains off the pavement today."

He’s already got one foot on the windowsill when he realizes he still doesn’t know who this girl actually is. She hangs around with Ginka and his friends though, so he’s bound to run across her in the future and he doesn't like that he knows who he is while he's completely clueless.

"I didn’t catch your name."

"I didn’t throw it." Despite everything, there is no more anger in her voice. He has his back turned, so he can’t see, but she almost sounds… amused. Just when he figures she won’t tell him and is about to finally climb outside, she answers. 

"It’s Nanami. Nanami Fey."

—

"Look, I know we’re all _very_ excited to storm the insanely conspicuous castle belonging to the resident corporate-overlord, but this is obviously a trap. Maybe we should reconsider our options. Come up with a proper plan, or look for a way in that isn’t the literal front door."

They're all standing in front of Dark Nebula Castle, ready to head on in. Except for Nanami. They can't afford to waste any time and he's going to head in. With, or without her.

"Nobody’s forcing you to come. If you’re scared, feel free to stay here." She just huffs and rolls her eyes.

"You’re impossible." So maybe he was being kind of rude just now, but she sure doesn't pass up any opportunities to rag on him either. "Just don’t act all surprised when I hit you with that 'told you so' later." 

She never does. Even though, yes, it is a trap. Instead, when shit hits the fan, she takes it in stride, helping out along everyone else and staying remarkably calm during the whole ordeal. At first, he’s a bit surprised when she pulls a Bey and launcher out of the pocket of her oversized hoodie, but the feeling is gone as quickly as it came on. Of course, she’s a Blader. And not a half-bad one either, from what he can tell. 

They’re battling some of Daidouji's goons when Madoka urges Ginka to go on ahead. Nanami and him end up following after the others tell them to go. Not that they make it far, because a few more of those Bladers show out, blocking their paths. Nanami immediately steps forward and launches her Bey, but when Ginka and him try to do the same, she stops them with a gesture of her hand.

"You two run on ahead, I’ll take care of this." 

"Are you sure?" Ginka asks, sounding pretty worried about leaving her behind, a sentiment Kyoya doesn't share. She doesn't seem like the person who'd throw herself into harm's way if there wasn't a chance for her to get out of it again.

"I’ll be fine. Now stop wasting time and go." 

Her tone leaves no room for argument, so they hit the ground running and, even though he's never seen her in action before today, he instinctively knows she’s going to be alright. The poor bastards coming at her? Not so much. 

Once again, they only manage to round a few corners before they're stopped again, this time by two guys who don't look like the other Bladers they've met here. The suspicion that they're somehow different is confirmed as soon as they begin to battle and, even though they have the potential to become a serious threat, Kyoya sends Ginka off on his own and braces himself for the battle. It goes on for a while and he lets himself be absorbed by the thrill of it until he hears the sound of footsteps approaching, accompanied by a voice he's gotten to know well.

"And here I thought Daidouji would run out of people to throw at us sooner or later." Nanami. 

"What are you doing here?"

"Ran out of ass to kick, so I figured I’d try and catch up." Figures. "Need some help?"

"No." She looks at him for a second, shrugging nonchalantly. Instead of backing off, Nanami launches her Bey, a mischievous smile on her lips. _Great._

"Well, too bad, because I’m here now." 

"Just don’t get in my way." 

She doesn’t. In fact, they work surprisingly well together. Kyoya has never much cared for tag-battles, to put it mildly, but, weirdly enough, he finds that battling alongside her is kind of fun despite neither of them liking the other one bit. More than that though, she’s good. Quick in evading any attack, but hitting hard when it counts. He finds that, someday, he’d really like to battle her. 

Together, they make short work of the twins and waste no time catching up with Ginka. During the battle that follows she remains mostly quiet but he can tell she’s keenly observing what's happening along with the rest of them. 

There’s something about that Ryuga guy that majorly rubs him the wrong way. A wrongness for the lack of a better term. The others are feeling it too, at least from what he can tell. Benkei, Kenta and Madoka aren’t exactly being subtle about it, but even Nanami’s gung-ho attitude is gone, replaced by a silent tension. What’s worse though, is that Ginka is actually struggling against him, despite how strong he is. 

What’s _way_ worse, is that he loses.

—

„You definitely didn’t imagine this. I felt it too,“ Nanami whispers to him as she passes him by. 

They're on their way to find Koma Village, and Ginka, and he can sense something is majorly off. Like they're being watched, or something. When Benkei asked him what was wrong, however, he assured him that everything was fine. 

They throw each other a look. This guy has to be the „something“ that’s been following around and both of them know it. When he introduces himself, Nanami gives him a warm smile, but Kyoya can sense she’s still on guard. And then the whole incident with the wild boar happens, Benkei only being saved by the falling tree. But trees don't just fall over like that and he thinks he sees a Beyblade, disappearing into the thicket. All the while, Hyoma is nowhere to be seen. While Benkei and Hyoma are busy talking about oh how crazy the situation was, Nanami pulls him aside.

„Alright, I’m calling bullshit. That guy’s a blader.“ 

„Agreed.“ Even as he says it, Kyoya can't believe that they're actually on the same page about something, but, then again, from what has happened, that's the only logical possibility. And, say what you will about Nanami, she isn't dumb. 

A few days ago he might've had trouble admitting that, but, ever since their tag-battle at Dark Nebula Castle, he's started seeing her in a different light. It's not as though he's warmed up to her all of a sudden, but he now knows that she can hold her own, especially in a battle, and Kyoya can respect that. 

„Why would he lie about it though?“ That one has been giving him trouble too. Kyoya doesn't have a clue as to what the guy's motive might be. 

„Whatever it is, we need to be careful. I don’t trust him“ 

"Word."

So, when it turns out that, not only has he been leading them around in circles, but lied about not being a blader neither of them are surprised in the least. What does surprise them though is that Ryoma gives in and declines to battle either, Nanami or himself, after facing off with the other two. A fact which neither is too happy with. 

After that, the rest of the day, and the following one, pass in a blur of frantic activity, including a sacred mountain and a goddamn _talking dog_ , and soon they’re on the train back to the city. 

—

Kyoya's got a train to catch. After the survival battle and the announcement of Battle-Bladers, he has his work cut out for him. Gathering those points to qualify for the tournament is his top priority right now. When he walks onto the platform though, he sees something he didn't expect. Or, to be more specific, someone.

Nanami stands on the platform, leaning against a pillar and both hands buried in the pocket of her hoodie. It seems like she hasn't noticed him yet, so he gets to think on whether he wants to approach her or not. But he figures she's going to notice him eventually, he doesn't exactly blend into crowds that well and, anyway, the platform is nearly empty. Besides, he wants to know why she skipped out on the survival battle. When he found out she didn't attend he was honestly surprised. Why pass it up? So he walks up to her with brisk steps, and, forgoing a greeting because idle chit-chat isn't what he's here for, starts talking.

„You weren’t at the survival battle,“ he says, but both of them know that what he actually wants is to ask why she wasn’t there. She remains silent for a moment, clearly uncomfortable with the question. It almost feels weird. Up until now, he's never managed to faze her, no matter what he's thrown at her. 

„Uh, yeah.“ She's pointedly looking away from him and, after exhaling deeply, finally answeres the unspoken question. „I was at the hospital.“ Wait, what?

„You're not sick, are you?“ he asks despite himself. Even though they aren’t friends, they get along at best, he still finds himself worrying. Probably because he doesn't want to lose an opponent like her. 

„Oh!“ She exclaims, looking as if she's realized something. Her voice is light, so he figures it can't be bad. „I was just visiting someone, don’t worry.“ 

For a second he considers it might be a lie, but she doesn't like the type, so the thought is quickly dismissed. Though wonders why she'd choose that particular day to pay someone a visit. For a moment, he considers asking but decides against it in the end. He has neither, an interest, nor the right to snoop around in her personal affairs. 

"I see," he answers instead. "You're still trying to get into Battle-Bladers though, right?"

"Oh, you bet! Just because I missed one tournament doesn't mean I'll let myself fall behind." There's an enthusiasm in her voice he knows all too well. Of course she's not a quitter. "Actually, I'm on the way to a tournament right now, to gather points."

"Really, where?" Part of him hopes it's the same one he's planning to attend since they haven't had the chance to face off against each other yet, and Kyoya craves the challenge she'd pose.

"Up north." So not the same one he's going to, he's heading a completely different direction. A shame. 

They stand on the platform a while longer, neither of them trying to return to the conversation, until a train rolls in. It's then, that she speaks up again.

"That's my train. I'd wish you luck but then you'd come at me with some rant about not needing it and I'm really not in the mood for that." Half of him wants to be annoyed because she's teasing him, the other half wants to be annoyed because she's right. Put those two parts together and he's, well, annoyed. Rather than talking back though, he fixes her with a glare that does nothing to wipe the amused expression off her face. "See you at Battle-Bladers, I guess."

With that, she turns around and disappears into the train.

—

Battle-Bladers is rigged, and everyone knows it. First, the weird pairings putting everyone up against a Blader from Dark Nebula, and now the last-second changes to the pairings in round two. Kyoya isn't the only one who's pissed, but Daidouji made it clear that they could either get with the new pairings or be disqualified. Bastard. 

He's been robbed of his chance to face off against Ryuga, at least for now. Instead, Nanami now gets her turn. It's about time for her to head to the arena, but he wants to have a word first, so he waits for her to pass through the hallway.

"So, you're up."

"Guess so. Pretty scummy move to manipulate the pairings like that," she says, not sounding overtly mad, but he can still tell she doesn't like Daidouji manipulating things at all. 

"You think you got what it takes?"

She doesn't answer immediately, a look on her face that suggests she's deep in thought. After a few seconds, she exhales deeply and looks him directly in the eye.

"I'd love to spout things like 'I'll win no matter what', but right now I can't afford that. I need to be realistic." The look in her eyes is determined, rather than scared and, despite her choice of words, he knows she hasn't given up. "I don't know if I can beat him, but that doesn't mean I'm giving up either. All I can do is give it my best shot, just like with every other battle."

A quiet moment passes between them, then she turns to walk off, but, after a few steps, she turns around again to face him, a troubled expression on her face.

"I… can't help the feeling that there is more to this situation than we can see. I think there's more to Ryuga than 'pure evil manifested'." Kyoya raises an eyebrow at her. Why'd she say something like that is beyond him. From what he's seen, hell, from what everyone has seen, that guy wants nothing but to crush everyone he crosses paths with. She picks up on his disbelief though, and quickly continues. "Don't get me wrong here, he probably _is_ kind of a dick, but I get the feeling that, right now, somethings wrong with him. I can't really explain it, but it almost feels like… whatever I'm sure you don't want to listen to my theories, especially since I can't prove them."

Actually, he does wants to hear her theories, especially since he's sensed some kind of wrongness about Ryuga back at Dark Nebula Castle, and he bets it's the same thing, but they're out of time. That, and if she doesn't want to tell her there's no use pressing her. If she doesn't want to talk, she won't, no matter what he says. At least this is the feeling he gets from her. 

"You better bring it then," he says instead and walks away.

Nanami does bring it. Firstly, she doesn't seem intimidated by Ryuga a bit. Just like when she met Kyoya for the first time. The thought brings a small grin to his lips. She doesn't let herself get riled up by his threats either, which brings a look onto Ryuga's face he hasn't seen before. The fact that she's neither angered by his taunts nor scared of him seems to have rattled him. But, more importantly, the battle is amazing to watch, even he will admit that much. It's intense and she manages to get out of quite a lot of sticky situations while making much more than just a small dent into Drago. She's actually giving the guy trouble.

Still, in the end, she loses.

Except, unlike Hikaru, she remains standing after her defeat. Instead of passing out on the spot, she picks up her Bey, looks at Ryuga that obviously says something along the lines of 'Get bent', and calmly walks out of the arena. The others immediately rush to look for her at the competitor's rooms and he finds himself following along. When they reach her room, the door is wide open, almost as if she expected them, and Nanami is inside, pacing. When she notices them and turns to face the group, there is no sadness or regret on her face, but she sure does look exhausted. At second glance, she looks a little pale too.

"Well, that's it for me," she says when they enter, her typical brand of mirth clinging to her words.

"Hey, you were amazing!" Ginka says in a loud voice, smiling broadly. "You really did some damage to him there."

"Unless one of us manages to beat him, I'm afraid that doesn't matter much." The answer is accompanied by a smile she doesn't really mean. Kyoya's not the best at reading people, scratch that, he really kind of sucks at it, but he still figures that one out in an instant. Ginka immediately shuts down that line of thought though. 

"I don't think so. And, hey, you're still standing, that's impressive." Not a second after he says that, Nanami winces and looks at him with an almost guilty expression.

"Actually, I think I'm going to pass out now. Sorry guys." 

Mere seconds later, before anyone can quite comprehend what she's just said, her eyes become unfocused and she collapses, only saved from a collision with the floor by Ginka and Benkei scrambling to catch her. Together they manage to lower her to the floor somewhat gently but, as soon as that's done, their composure slips away. They keep shaking her by the shoulders, so hard her head rolls back and forth, and, fruitlessly, yelling at her to wake up. Not that Kyoya is doing any better, standing there and doing nothing except watching the situation unfold.

"That's enough!" Madoka's voice booms to the room, stopping the two's frantic yelling. "If you keep shaking her around like that you're only going to hurt her more!"

"Then what are we-" Ginka begins to argue, but Kyoya's brain seems to finally have caught up to the situation and he quickly cuts him off.

"She's right. Now stop crowding her." After the others reluctantly back off he crouches down next to her and, carefully, places two fingers on her throat and two more on his own, for comparison. It takes him a few seconds to find the right spot but, when he does, he quickly finds that her pulse seems fine. "I think she's okay for now, but we still need to get her to a hospital."

He could've saved himself the bother of saying that, as Madoka is already talking on her phone, calling for an ambulance. Well, at least it seems to pacify Benkei and Ginka. Together, they move her onto the couch, where she remains until the ambulance arrives and is taken away by the paramedics, who, to everyone's relief, confirm that she's not in any sort of critical condition. 

He can't explain why he's stuck around this long in the first place, but with the situation taken care of, he leaves the others and prepares for his upcoming battle.

—

It's over. Ginka has won Battle Bladers and Daidouji can go shove it, for all he cares. Of course, Kyoya is out cold in the hospital when it happens so he doesn't get to see it for himself. At least not in the conventional way. But, to be honest, he doesn't really want to think about the weird out-of-body experience he just had.

Together with Nanami and Hikaru who have also woken up, and, considering they also know how the tournament ended without actually being there, had the same thing happen to them as he did, he goes to look for the others. As they make their way back to the Stadium, or what remains of it, he hangs a few steps behind them while the two girls chat with each other while he remains lost in thought. After losing to Ryuga he's personally experienced how hard the effects of that loss actually hit. So how has Nanami managed to stay awake for so long after losing? There must be some trick to that.

Or, maybe, she's simply stronger than he's been giving her credit for. 

When they arrive, everyone is not only happy to see them up and walking and swept up in the high that comes with being a part of defeating literal evil. At least that's what he thinks, it's not like he's done it before. Ginka holds some over-the-top speech about Beyblading, but even Kyoya knows that, at the core, what he's saying is true. The fight goes on, and he isn't planning on getting left behind.

Even though the atmosphere has him pumped, the only place he's going to go today is home. Yes, technically he's slept for a good while but, man, is he beat. Coincidentally, Nanami is heading in the same direction, so they end up going together. They walk in silence for a good while, the sun slowly setting behind the horizon. It’s a companionable silence though, not an awkward one and it suits him just fine. Kyoya’s never been one to enjoy small-talk and, apparently, she isn’t either. Either that or she’s picked up on his dislike of it, not that he bothers trying to hide it. Still, after a few more minutes, she does speak. 

"So, you wanna have it out?" She’s abruptly stopped walking, and, though her tone sounds light, looks at him with an intense expression on her face.

"What?"

"A battle," she says as if it's the most obvious thing in the world. "You wanna go?"

Of course he does, especially since they never had a chance to face off at Battle-Bladers, but something is holding him back from agreeing straight away. 

"Now?"

"Why not?" 

The obvious answer being 'because you just got out of the hospital' but before he can say it, Kyoya realizes the hypocrisy of it because, as coincidence has it, he's also just gotten out of the hospital and he isn't worried about himself in the slightest. Nanami isn’t dumb, she knows her limits.

"Alright, let’s do this."

They battle right then and there, on the road by the riverside not too far from where they first met. He wins, she loses, but, somehow, Kyoya finds that doesn’t matter. Regardless of how the had battle ended, it was really really close and had him giving his all until the very last second. Though, what else did he expect? She’s smart and incredibly skilled, so the fact that this could’ve easily ended differently isn't exactly a surprise. Though, the maybe strangest thing about their battle is that he didn’t get a kick out of beating her. The result isn’t what matters. Instead, he finds he's having fun just battling. Like when the two were up against the twins at Dark Nebula Castle, except this time the feeling is much stronger. 

Reluctantly, he admits to himself that this is the most fun he's had in a long while. 

It looks like that might be the case for her too. There isn't even a hint of disappointment on her face as she picks up her Bey. Instead, she smiles. It's a broad, true smile that reflects in her eyes. And, just like that, all the adversity that might have been lingering on between them is gone. 

They might not be friends, not exactly, but, as of that day, Nanami Fey definitely is a person he respects.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's it for chapter one, the next one will span season 2 of the show. Hope you had fun reading!
> 
> (and, yes, Tsubasa still exists I just needed an excuse to have Nanami in the tournament lmao)


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, so this chapter was supposed to cover the entire second season, but the first part alone is already the length of a full chapter, so I decided to split it. There's a good amount of drama in this one, I'm sorry. (maybe. a bit.) 
> 
> Hope you enjoy and, if you wanna be a literal angel, feel free to leave a comment <3

He’s 14 when he gets the chance to take on the world. 

Without so much as a doubt, Kyoya decides to attend qualifications for the World Championship, even though he already knows he’s not joining the Japanese team. He already has other plans. Everything pretty much goes as expected and he lands a spot. Honestly, he would have to seriously reconsider what the hell he’s doing if he didn’t. 

Ginka is predictably confused when he tells him that he’s not going to join the team, but that’s a him-problem. What else did he expect? Kyoya was never going to be all buddy-buddy with him, not even for the sake of World Championships. He’s already turned his back when Ginka says something that makes him pause. 

"First Nanami and now you. Seriously, what is it with you guys?"

"What?" He already knows Nanami qualified, her battle was pretty fun to watch, but that second piece of information is completely new to him.

"She isn’t going to participate in the tournament. At all," Ginka adds. He isn't joking.

It takes a second for that to sink in because it makes absolutely zero sense. Actually, it’s pretty much the dumbest thing he’s heard in a while. Why in the world would she throw the Championships? She’s too smart for that. Or, at least he thought she was.

"She didn't want to make a big deal out of it, so she told Madoka and me after-"

"Whatever." This isn’t his problem. He's got enough of those without any outside help. As far as Kyoya is concerned, he’s got places to be and not a whole lot of time to get there. Breaking his head over someone else’s issues would just end up getting in the way. "See you at the tournament, Hagane." With that, he leaves the stadium behind and, with it, a stunned Ginka. His one bag is already packed, all he has to do is grab it and he’s good to go. 

But because, apparently, nothing can ever just go according to plan, he first faces a Nanami-shaped roadblock in front of the stadium. Technically, she isn’t in his way at all, in fact, she doesn’t even seem to notice that he’s there, but now that he’s seen her he wants to know what the hell she’s on about. Kyoya wasn’t planning to confront her about the tournament, really, but the moment he sees her it’s like he _has_ to. So, despite already knowing that this can’t possibly end well, he walks up to her. 

"You aren’t taking the spot." Maybe she's used to him skipping past pointless greetings by now because she doesn't seem surprised in the least. Quite the opposite, she seems… calm.

"Nope." 

Ah yes, there it is. The way she says it, as if it isn’t a big deal, sets something off in him. Something bad. Why doesn’t she care? This is the _World Championships_. This might as well be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and she’s throwing it away. It seriously ticks him off. 

"Why?" There’s a hint of surprise on her face, for just a moment, like she hadn’t expected him to ask. For what it’s worth, he doesn’t fully understand why he cares about it either. 

All he knows is that he wants an answer, and he wants it now. 

"I… don’t wanna talk about it." She doesn’t look at him when she speaks, her tone hesitant. It immediately gets him suspicious, she doesn’t usually, or more like, never, play coy. 

Nanami, on the other hand, considers the conversation to be over. She makes to walk past him, but he quickly gets in front of her, blocking her path. Obviously, she isn’t too happy with that, crossing both arms in front of her and shooting him a glare. If looks could kill he'd be a goner, but as it is he could care less.

"Tell me," he asks again, more insistent this time. "Why aren’t you taking the spot?"

"It’s personal, okay? Now move, you’re in the way." 

She hasn’t raised her voice, but the cold firmness in it is enough for him to tell that her patience is thinning. Weird. It usually takes a bit more than some questions to get a rise out of her. Either way, her answer isn’t going to cut it. _It’s personal. Bullshit._

"No." 

Technically she could just walk away and put an end to the whole conversation; he can’t stop her. But, here’s the thing, Nanami Fey is practically incapable of letting anyone, least of all him, have the last word. 

"Kyoya I swear to God-" 

"I just don’t get it! Why would you back out?!"

"Why are you so pissed about it?!" Oh, so now she’s turning this around on him? Nice try, but it’s not going to work. 

"So, what, you don’t want to Beyblade anymore? That it?" It’s petty, he knows, but what else is he supposed to think after what she just did? Besides, by now he’d say anything to get her talking. 

"You know what? Coming up with other versions of _I don’t fucking want to talk about it is getting really exhausting_. I’m leaving." 

Again, he moves to block her path as soon as she takes a step. The way she reacted makes him think there might be something to his initial claim and that really pisses him off. What if she really is giving up on being a Blader? 

So, spurred by anger and irritation, he digs deeper.

"Or are you throwing the Championship because you’re scared?! Because you don’t think you can win?!" he doubles down, voice louder than he intended it to be, but he doesn’t care about that anymore. Keeping his temper in check isn’t on his list of priorities right now and, anyway, it isn't as if he's the only one getting mad here. Nanami is already way past the point of losing her cool.

"You seriously need to shut up." 

"And you need to stop being such a damn coward!"

"Stop it!"

"Or what?! It’s not like you have the guts to do anything about it!"

She blinks. A second of silence. Then, in a tone he’s never heard her use before, low and dripping with acid, she says:

"Oh _fuck you_ Kyoya." 

With that, she finally pushes past him, bumping into his shoulder for good measure. The viciousness in her voice momentarily stuns him, long enough for her to walk away with brisk steps. He could probably catch up, but he doesn’t want to, not anymore. Deep inside, he knows Nanami isn’t a coward, not a quitter either, but saying those words had felt so right mere seconds ago. He’d just been so damn _angry._

Now, mere moments later, he can’t even figure out why he was so worked up about the whole thing in the first place. His irritation with her still lingers, sure, but he isn’t angry anymore. Yeah, it’s a waste to throw the Championship before it’s even started, but that’s hardly his problem. Then why does he feel so betrayed by her decision? They’re not teammates and they aren’t friends, so there really isn’t any reason for him to care in the first place. 

If this had happened a year ago, he wouldn’t have. In fact, he wouldn’t have cared enough to go and have a fight with her about it in the first place. It was easier that way. Now he’s actually pissed the situation has turned out this way. More than that though, he senses an ugly feeling rear its head, deep in the pit of his stomach. Guilt. He was in the wrong and he knows it. 

Kyoya exhales deeply, though it comes out as more of a hiss and shakes off the feeling before it can take hold of him. He’s Kyoya goddamn Tategami and he doesn’t have to justify his actions in front of anyone. 

—

The Championships are, well, Kyoya doesn’t really know how to describe it. In the blink of an eye, he’s hopping from place to place, neither of which he’s ever seen before, together with people he hasn’t met before. 

Yeah, he’s traveled before, but this is different. First of all, he’s never had other people to care about, it’s always been him and the road. But there’s no getting around the team thing and, honestly? It doesn’t bother him as much as he thought it would. Sure there are moments where he wishes everyone would just shut up and leave him alone, but they don’t happen nearly as often as he expects them to. 

See, he can be cordial after all, or at least something close to it. Part of him even kind of likes the company, though he wouldn’t be caught dead admitting that. 

And then there’s the airplanes. Cold, overly cramped, god-awful airplanes. Of course he’d known going into this that he’d have to fly a lot, but he hadn’t been prepared for how much he’d hate it. Airports are some of the worst places he’s ever been to and Kyoya’s been stuck in a literal wolf-infested canyon before. He’s a goddamn authority on shitty places. The worst thing by far though is the flying itself. His stomach feels like it’s doing flips inside of him every time they take off or land and even that doesn’t come close to the horror that is turbulence. Kyoya might be able to control the wind with Leone, but he prefers his feet on solid ground, thank you very much.

The traveling is only half of it though. This wouldn’t be the Beyblade World-Championships without some battles to go along with it and, even though he has yet to lose a single one, he’s learned a lot just from the experience.

So, how to describe it? Challenging? Fun? Absolutely Insane? Somehow all of these fit one way or another but they don’t exactly hit the spot either. Still, it’s as close as he’s gonna get. It’s all and nothing at once and, for now, he allows himself to indulge in it. Up until now, that is. Because for what’s up next, he’s going to need all of his focus.

Because Kyoya is back in Japan, ready to finally go up against Ginka. He’s been waiting for this ever since the moment their last battle ended and damn him if he brings anything less than his a-game today. So, he draws back and focuses, running over possible strategies in his mind. Until a knock at the door disturbs him. Whoever is on the other side of it, they don’t bother waiting for permission to enter, throwing the door open after just a split second. He’s ready to give them a piece of his mind, but once he sees who it is, Kyoya stops dead in his tracks.

Well, fuck him. It’s Nanami. 

She saunters into the room, casually waving a hand at them, as if it’s only natural for her to be here, even though everyone is staring at her in silence with expressions ranging from suspicion to surprise, Benkei being the big exception. He… actually seems happy to see her. Kyoya definitely falls into the first category though, fixing her with a glare. Why is she here? 

It makes him uncomfortable, he realizes. All of a sudden the guilt he’s been ignoring all this time threatens to wake again. This needs to stop.

"What are _you_ doing here?" he asks before anyone else has the chance to say something, least of all her. 

Besides, he really does want to know. Last time he checked, this was a restricted area. By now he really should’ve expected it, but she isn’t fazed by his hostile tone in the slightest. She just takes another step, further into the room. 

"Most people start with a 'hello', you know? But I’m here to wish you luck." 

"I don’t need it," he spits, not looking her in the eye. 

"Well, good luck to everyone else then. You do you." Even though he still isn’t looking, he can practically hear her rolling her eyes.

"How’d you even get in here?" he asks in lieu of letting her take control of the conversation again, if this can even be considered one. 

"Had to take out some of the security guards to get in," she says nonchalantly and _now_ he’s looking at her. When she notices his confusion, she shorts and shakes her head, before adding, "The _front door_ , you idiot. I wanted to visit Madoka and the others, so they got me in."

"You know the other team too?" Nile asks, speaking up for the first time since she’s come in, sounding a tad suspicious, but, more than that, surprised.

"Yup," she answers, popping the p at the end of the word. "We’re friends." Benkei nods to back her up.

"In that case, who are you rooting for?" Demure chimes in.

"It wouldn’t be fun if I told you, would it?" she answers, her voice laden with humor and a mischievous smile on her lips. 

"Touché." 

Nanami smiles at Demure, then and looks at Kyoya again. It still makes him want to bolt, their fight back at the qualifications hanging in the space between them. Not that it seems to affect her at all. 

"You better make this interesting, I’m cutting class to be here, you know?" So, what, she walks up in here like she owns the place, pretending nothing ever happened, and then this? The nerve. Before he can bite back though, Benkei speaks up.

"Oh, right! You started High-School this year, right?"

"Yeah."

That’s surprising. Usually, people who are serious about being a Blader don’t bother with school after they’re done with their mandatory years, it just gets in the way. You can’t run around the country going to tournaments while you’re chained to a desk. Honestly, he can’t fathom why Nanami would choose this, but then again, it wouldn’t be the only questionable decision she’s made recently.

"What’s it like?" Benkei asks, sounding genuinely curious. Admittedly, Kyoya is too, if only a little. After all, it’s not something he’ll ever have to go through, not if he has any sort of say about it.

"Insane." There’s a genuine exhaustion in her voice, despite the smile on her lips. "But I don’t want to talk about it now, and you guys are up soon, so I’m gonna buzz off."

He should be glad, but as she walks away he feels nothing but a deep-seated irritation. Why is she already miles past their fight while he’s still hung up on it? If this were a competition, he’d be losing miserably. And it doesn’t stop there, because, of course, she has to one-up him again.

"Oh, and Kyoya?" She stops on the doorstep, looking at him over her shoulder. "I’m not in the mood to hold grudges right now, so you’re forgiven for what happened the other day." She shoots him a cheeky grin and, with that, finally walks out and closes the door behind her. 

It honestly pisses him off, not because he’s still mad at her, but because she’s gone ahead and done the thing he’s refused to do, so casually she makes it seem like it’s the easiest thing in the world. Objectively, he knows he should have been the one to apologize, but, when he saw her standing there he just couldn’t do it. He called her a coward after the qualifications. How the tables have turned. Between the two of them, he might be the better Blader, but it feels like she always one-ups him where anything else is concerned. It gets to him more than he cares to admit. Frustrated and defeated he sighs and finally tears his eyes away from the now-closed door, only to find that everyone else is looking at him. Oh, great. 

"Okay, what did you do?" To his surprise, Benkei’s voice has adopted an accusing tone. That’s never happened before, at least not where Kyoya is concerned. His answer is immediate.

_"Nothing."_

"Really? Because what she just said paints a bit of a different picture," Nile, of all people, adds. 

Alright, that’s it. So he’s ready to acknowledge he’s fucked up, but that doesn’t automatically make it everyone else’s business. What’s happened is between him and Nanami. Besides it’s not like it matters anymore, not after what she just pulled, even if it does leave him with a bitter aftertaste. 

"It’s none of your business," he hisses. "Now shut up and focus on the battle."

They do, but not before giving each other a series of looks that might as well pass as an entire conversation. As much as he wants to give them a piece of his mind, he really needs to focus. What lies ahead is all he’s been working for these past weeks and he’s not going to let a silly little argument get in the way.

— 

Losing wasn't part of Kyoya's vocabulary before he met Ginka. Now though, it definitely is. This is the end of the line for Team Wildfang, at least where the Championships are concerned. Even so, he can’t bring himself to be mad about it. Sure, there’s the ever-so-slight feeling of disappointment that comes with losing, but even that fades away in almost an instant. He might have missed his shot for the title, but he has done everything he set out to do, maybe even more. At the moment he’s almost… content. 

Almost, because the WBBA has bullied the entire team, sans Nile who got lucky during his fights, into taking a physical exam, just in case. It’s dumb, at least in his humble opinion – Kyoya already knows he’s fine. But apparently, there might be some 'legal trouble', whatever that means if they don’t get checked out, so there’s no getting around it. Here’s the thing about Hospitals though: everything takes a small eternity to get done. They’ve been here for about… way too long and in the overwhelming desire to do literally everything besides sitting around and staring at the same off-white walls, Nile, who's keeping them company through this, and him have gone off to get some coffee.

Not the most original idea, as it turns out, because, in front of the seemingly only coffee-machine in the whole damn building, is a line that goes through the entire room. Well, he’s already waiting, might as well do it here.

"Hey, isn’t that, uh, what’s her name- Nanami?" 

Kyoya looks around and, sure enough, there she is, talking to one of the nurses sitting behind a counter and walking off into a corridor a few moments later.

"Yeah. What’s she doing here?" 

"I hope she’s not sick or anything." 

Involuntarily, he thinks back to the survival battle, a memory that feels almost ancient by now, and how she skipped that tournament as well. Because she was in the hospital. Back then he believed her when she said that she was just visiting, but now he isn’t too sure. What if she _is_ sick?

Would he even care?

"She’s probably just swinging by to visit. I think Tsubasa is still here," he says, surprised to find that he’s trying to reassure himself, rather than explain the situation to Nile. 

"Must be it then." Nile seems to be content with that, but Kyoya isn’t convinced. Something feels… off. 

A few minutes later, they’re still waiting in line in front of that damn coffee-machine, his suspicions are confirmed. He hears the sound of a door opening and, moments later, he sees Nanami being half lead, half pushed out of the corridor by a man in a nurses’ uniform. 

"Miss, I’m sorry but you really can’t be in there," he says in an insistent tone. She doesn’t seem to listen and tries to push past him again, only to be held back. "Doctor, this way!"

Kyoya has two choices. One, he can keep standing in line and ignore this because, whatever is going on, it’s clearly none of his business. Two, he can go do something about it. Kyoya wants to go with number one, it’s served him well for most of his life, not to mention that last time he stuck his nose into Nanami’s affairs it didn’t end well for either of them. Number one is safe. Number one is smart. 

He chooses option number two.

"Nanami!" Either she can’t hear him or she’s ignoring him on purpose. Honestly, he has no idea which of the two it might be, but that doesn’t matter much at the moment. He tries again, but louder. 

**"Hey!"**

This time her head whips around towards him. When their eyes meet, he sees a headless panic in them. Whatever happened, it’s bad. Next thing he knows he’s walking over to her, even though he doesn’t have the foggiest about what he’s actually going to do. Before he can really try to think on it though, the nurse starts talking to him.

"Do you know her?" The situation has come at him so fast, or rather, he’s run right into it, he doesn’t really know what to say, so he just nods. It’s not like it’s a lie. "Good. Keep her away from that room," he says, pointing at a door currently being crowded by doctors before running off without waiting for an answer on Kyoya’s part.

"What’s going on?" he asks, realizing that asking her that is probably really rude, and not at all helpful a second too late. His specialty, apparently. All that considered, he didn’t really expect an answer, so it comes as kind of a surprise when he does get one. A _bad_ one.

"It’s my mom. I think she… I think she’s dying," she says as if she can’t quite believe it herself.

Okay, so he already didn’t have a plan on how to handle this, but now he’s completely lost. Why couldn’t he have stayed out of this? Nanami, on the other hand, can’t seem to stop talking, so fast she almost stumbles over her own words, now that the dam is broken. Note to self: fucking mind your own business next time. 

"She’s had this heart attack, like, almost a year ago. And then, just a few days before qualifications she had another one. The doctors told us that she didn’t have much time, but- shit I didn’t think it would happen so soon." 

A pause.

"I’m not ready." Her voice almost breaks.

Up until this day, he’s never seen Nanami be scared. Not when first meeting him, not when infiltrating Dark Nebula’s Castle and not even when going up against Ryuga. Now though… now she’s definitely scared. And he doesn’t know how to handle that, so he looks towards Nile for backup.

He wants to tell him that _Nile, if you leave me alone with this I am going strangle you right now,_ but either telepathy really isn’t his thing or Nile is staying away on purpose. Begrudgingly, he has to admit that his friend has a point with that. This is already fucked, but the last thing Nanami needs is a total stranger watching her break down. To be honest, she probably doesn’t want _him_ here either. The feeling is mutual, Kyoya would rather be anywhere else right now, but he suspects she’ll just disobey the nurse’s order and head right back to where she came from if left on her own, so he stays. 

Thinking about it, why isn’t anyone else with her? No father, or siblings, or literally anyone else. Just Nanami. Yeah, he doesn’t have the closest relationship with his parents and, even though he has a soft spot for him, he only visits his little brother once in a blue moon. But if something like this happened in his family, at least he wouldn’t be standing in the damn waiting-room alone. 

After what’s, at least according to the clock on the wall, fifteen minutes, but feels more like a small eternity, the same nurse from before comes walking towards them, a doctor in tow. It takes him all of two seconds to figure out what they’re going to tell Nanami, the looks on their faces says it all. She seems to understand this too and glances at him for just a second, silently telling him that he should go before this gets worse. Not only is she giving him an out, she probably wants him gone, so he takes the chance in a heartbeat and retreats back to where Nile is waiting, now equipped with drinks for everyone. 

"That didn’t look good." 

No shit it didn’t, though Kyoya doesn’t have to say that out loud. Nile probably knows already, he’s perceptive enough, but, in situations like these, people are always grasping for something to say.

At that very moment, as if on cue, Nanami turns away from the nurse and walks out of the waiting room, a blank expression on her face and both fists balled at her sides. It’s not the expression of someone who’s just gotten good news. And then it hits him.

"Oh shit." Nile looks at him, the confusion evident on his face, but Kyoya continues before he can ask. "You remember when Nanami said she forgives me and I didn’t tell you what it was for?" Even though he looks unsure about what Kyoya is on about, he nods. "She went to qualifications for the World Championship too. Made the team, but she chose not to take the spot."

"She backed out?" 

After a nod, Kyoya continues to tell him the whole story, without fudging any of the details. How he picked a fight and didn’t believe her when she said she had a reason for backing out. How that reason was, quite probably, her mother. After he’s done there’s a pregnant pause and he has to force himself not to look away in shame. Nile remains silent for a moment, but when he speaks up again his answer is short and decisive.

"Wow. You’re an ass."

"Thanks, but I didn’t need a reminder," Kyoya shoots back, though there is no real intent behind his words. Nile is right and both of them know it. 

"You should go talk to her. I’ll stay with the others."

"Me? How the hell am I supposed to help?" Considering the circumstances, he should be on the very bottom of the list of people Nanami wants to see right now.

"You probably can’t. Especially not after the shit you pulled, but she really shouldn’t be alone right now."

Very encouraging, but Kyoya knows Nile is right again. Leaving a person all on their own after something this bad is always a pretty good recipe for disaster. Kyoya releases a sigh and shakes his head. He doesn’t have to see Nanami right now, but he should, and, even though he’s never really given a shit about what he should do, he kind of owes her. And if there’s one thing he hates, it’s owing people. Better get moving then.

"Alright, I’ll go. See you later." 

It takes him a solid five minutes to find her because the hospital is too damn big and she’s somehow managed to find the most secluded spot in it. When he finally manages to spot her she’s sitting on the stairs leading to the roof, face covered in her hands and the situation overwhelms him almost immediately. Sure, he’s been in tough spots before and, usually, has a knack for handling them, but none of them ever involved a crying person. That’s way out of his comfort zone. Part of him wants to bail, but that would be the single most cowardly thing he’s ever done. Hell, it would be the most cowardly thing anyone has ever done, so he approaches her instead. When she notices him, she looks up, seeming almost as surprised to see him as he is about still being here. 

"Kyoya?" she asks in a broken voice, almost as if she isn’t sure that he’s really here. He doesn’t know how to respond to that, so he simply nods in silence. "She didn’t make it."

He’s at a total loss about what to say to that. I’m sorry? My condolences? It’s what people usually say when someone dies, but, even in his mind, the words feel so terribly inadequate he almost cringes. Yes, he is sorry, truly, but that doesn’t nearly feel enough. What actually comes out of his mouth though, is even worse.

"Shit." 

_Great fucking going, Tategami._

Through some form of divine intervention, however, she doesn’t seem mad about his word-vomit at all. Instead, she just looks at him through teary eyes, even managing a weak grin, before replying in a small voice: 

"Yeah." 

And that’s when he realizes, even though their positions are different, this situation is just as new and overwhelming for her as it is for him. At least he can take comfort in the fact that he isn’t the only one stumbling blindly here.

After their short exchange, neither of them says another word. He just sits down next to her on the steps, keeping her company while she cries, even though he isn’t entirely sure why. It might be what Nile said and it might be some lingering feeling of obligation, after what he’s done to her. Most likely a combination of both. 

She cries for a good while, he can’t exactly tell how long, but, outside the window, the sun has set. He’s definitely missed his physic, but he couldn’t care less. When she’s done he tells her to wait for a second and gets her some paper-towels from the nearest bathroom. He still doesn’t have a clue about how to handle this, but, if it were him, he wouldn’t want everyone to see him all snot-faced. When he comes back she looks at him for the first time hours with red-rimmed eyes and looking absolutely exhausted. They better leave, not only for her sake but because visiting hours are long over by now and the last thing either of them needs is to be kicked out by hospital security. She seems to pick up on his sentiment and rises from the ground, giving him a resolute nod.

"Are you gonna be fine on your own?" he asks as soon as they leave hospital grounds.

He doesn’t want it to look like he’s trying to get rid of her, but between dropping out of the tournament and everything that’s just happened, he desperately needs to clear his head. Alone, that is. Alright, so maybe he is trying to get rid of her. Thankfully, she nods. Before they part ways though, she leaves him with one final thing.

"Thanks. I mean it."


End file.
